Many fields of medical treatment and healthcare require monitoring of certain body functions, physical states and conditions, and patient behaviors. Thus, e.g., for patients suffering from diabetes, a regular check of the blood glucose level forms an essential part of the daily routine. The blood glucose level has to be determined quickly and reliably, often several times per day. Medical devices are used to facilitate the collection of medical information without unduly disturbing the lifestyle of the patient. A large number of medical devices for monitoring various body functions are commercially available. Also, medical treatment and healthcare may require monitoring of exercise, diet, meal times, stress, work schedules and other activities and behaviors.
To reduce the frequency of necessary visits to doctors, the idea of home care gained popularity over the recent years. Technological advancements in medicine led to the increased use of medical devices. Many of these medical devices, such as meters and medicine delivery devices, are able to collect and store measurements and other data for long periods of time. Other devices, such as computers, portable digital assistants (PDAs), and cell phones, have been adapted to medical uses by the development of software directed to the collection of healthcare data. These advancements led to the development of health management systems that enable collection and use of large numbers of variables and large amounts of healthcare data. While systems were traditionally developed for use in healthcare facilities and health management organizations including insurance companies and governmental agencies (HCP systems), increased technological sophistication by the populous at large led to the increased use of health management systems by patients, care givers, and others (patient systems) in addition to increased use by HCP systems. U.S. Pat. No. 7,103,578 and U.S. Published Application No. 2004/0172284 disclose two such methods and systems. Many of these systems are able to transfer data between them.